Church of Humanity, Repentant
The Church of Humanity Repentant is a progressive religion formed shortly after the reign of the Blood Eagle. Its members are a diverse group of scientists, spiritualists, activists and committed siblings from all over the sector, each with their own unique world view. Their common beliefs are acceptance of all, including aliens, and that all conscious life has a soul. They believe that the aggressive way mankind dealt with alien life in the past was wrong, and that we should make good for this through love and acceptance. Especially in recent times, the Church of Humanity Repentant has been rumored to have been involved in extending charitable activities to not just aliens, but synthetics too. Church leaders have publicly condemned the spreading of such rumors. Though dispersed between countless sects across the sector, the homeworld of the Church, and the center of its sector-wide operations, is the planet of Cabina in the Benilli system. It is the seat of the Concord, the Church's governing council. The Church peacefully shares this world with the native Cah-Binn alien species. Doctrine The Church of Humanity Repentant is made up of a highly diverse composition of individuals and sects, as a result there are many different schools of thought with wildly different doctrines or lack thereof. There are, however, three core tenets that every sect and member subscribes to: # The Soul begets Consciousness, Consciousness begets the Soul. # All conscious life is valuable and should be treated with respect. # We must atone for the mistakes of our past through Repentance, through Word and Deed. These tenets largely date back to the CHR's original founding by the Last Exarch, also known as the Crusader of Contrition, and the earliest texts on repentance developed during that period. But, the Church is full of charismatic leaders who have developed their own following and teachings, as well as individuals motivated primarily by the practical and ethical side of the three tenets rather than more intellectual or spiritual concerns. With each new convert, a new perspective is brought into the practices of the Church. Many turn to the words of the Great Rethinkers, a loose cannon of texts and holovids that preach the beliefs of the Three Tenets. No thinker is accepted by all, and no initiate supports every thinker's work. More detailed information on the Great Rethinkers can be found here. Organisation Hierarchy The Church of Humanity Repentant has very little in the ways of formal hierarchy. Certain highly respected or influential individuals are elected or appointed to the Concord, a council whose primary responsibility is coordinating joint activities between the desperate sects and organisations with ties to the Church. By and large, these are joint charity events, joint pilgrimages, sharing of places of worship on worlds where not all sects can afford their own church buildings, and so on. Each sect and individual acts with a large degree of autonomy, and many Church activities take place entirely outside of the Concord's involvement. A full list of the of sects and religious orders currently active in the church can be found here. A full list of influential or otherwise noteworthy individuals currently active in the church can be found here. Naming Scheme Representing its embrace of diversity, naming schemes in the Church of Humanity Repentant are all over the place. Members hold titles from doctor, to professor, to brothers and priests and innumerate more esoteric or idiosyncratic titles specific to one sect or person. The only universal scheme is that the term "sibling" is used Church-wide as the general term of address between members when not using names or more formal titles. History Pre-Scream Origins The Church claims its earliest origins in the original opposition against alien genocide that arose during and after the original "War for Human Prosperity" from 2206-2215. That such a movement existed is considered plausible by even the most secular of Church scholars, but how much of extant texts and teachings truly reflect this period, rather than later embellishment and mythologisation, is a topic of fierce and continual debate. As is how important or insignificant this movement truly was. However, many in the Church would consider this debate trivial. Whether or not famous semi-mythical figures such as the Crusader of Contrition ever actually existed is a minor issue compared to the truths that can still be found within their teachings of repentance. The Crusader of Contrition “And after the slaughter was complete, the High Emperor visited each of the Exarchs for their blessing, and the blessing of the new sector he had baptized in blood. Each received him. Each blessed him, calling him savior, paragon, corrector. Each save the last. When the High Emperor came to the Tenth Exarch, he was met with silence. The High Emperor asked not for forgiveness, but for a blessing, a blessing for the crimes he had committed, and the last Exarch would not give it to him. And so the seeds of the True Church were planted.”--''The Records 1:15'' The Crusader of Contrition, aka the Last Exarch, is one of the most enduringly popular of the semi-legendary figures of the supposed pre-Scream movement. In the stories, they were a loyal High Church Exarch to the first Emperox, but after the alien genocide could no longer support the High Church or the Imperial system, and exiled themselves. Gathering a group of like-minded individuals called 'the Faithful' they made a great Vigil of Repentance around the sector, weeping for the blood shed and prostrating themselves towards the surviving aliens. That this timeline does not seem to coincide with the officially recognized sequence of the war and the founding of the Empire and the High Church is considered by some an argument against its veracity, but meaningless to the innumerate others who look to the Crusader of Contrition as a saint and exemplar of human repentance. More detailed information on the Crusader of Contrition can be found here. Post-Scream Survival In the chaotic era following the scream, various movements espousing the ideals of what would become the Church remained active, spread across the sector. These movements were small and largely insignificant, but they preserved and expanded on the texts of Repentance. Founding of the Church In the aftermath of the reign of the Blood Eagle, the sector was ready to embrace repentance. Membership of still extant movements skyrocketed, and numerous new ones were founded, quickly gaining large followings. Recognizing their common cause, and the benefit of cooperation, the leaders of the most prominent of these movements traveled to Cabina and there formulated the three tenets and founded the Church of Humanity Repentant. Over time, almost all other groups, large and small, would come to join under the umbrella of the CHR. Ongoing Debates Except for agreement on the three tenets, almost any conceivable position is held by some sect or individual within the church. A few examples of particularly prominent debates are: The Nature of the Soul As per the first tenet, the soul begets consciousness and consciousness begets the soul. But is the soul a supernatural, spiritual, phenomenon separate from matter? Or is the soul simply another term for the phenomenon of consciousness when it arises naturally from matter according to natural laws? The Extent of the Anima As per the first and second tenets, all conscious, intelligent life is in possession of fundamentally equal souls. But what about animals? Plants? Rocks? Opinions within the CHR run the gamut from those arguing only intelligent self-aware beings have souls, to those arguing everything, down to the void of space itself, is inherently ensouled. The Demands of Repentance As per the third tenet, repentance cannot be a solely internal process, but must be acted out in deed. But which deeds does repentance demand? Again opinions run the gamut. Some sects advocate primarily basic charity to sentient beings, some advocate ritual self-flagellation, and some advocate active measures to not only repair the results of past sins, but prevent humanity from committing more sins in the present and future. Teachings and Practices There are as many variations of practices and rituals as there are members of the church, and the amount of rituals itself also varies heavily between sects and individual members. A few examples of practices that have become common among multiple orders are: Charity and Outreach One of the few near-universal practices among CHR sects and members is to do works of repentance. While the exact nature of these works vary, they are often particularly concerned with reaching the plight of those 'non-humans' who are (often very intentionally) overlooked by anthropocentric charities such as those run by the High Church. In addition to straight-up charitable works, many sects and members engage in outreach activities aimed at fostering peace and understanding between humans (both of and not of the faith) and aliens. Especially in recent times, there have been rumors that many sects and members have been expanding these activities to include synthetic related charities and outreach. Church leaders have publicly condemned the spreading of such rumors. Unveiling Unveiling is a common practice in the Church of Humanity Repentant by which a (often newly inducted) member admits guilt and complicity, and seeks forgiveness. After a soul is Unveiled, the soul is forgiven but not redeemed. Redemption and true Repentance combines both Word and Deed. The closing line spoken to the member at the end of their Unveiling is: "These are your Words, your Deeds must manifest." The Vigil Main article: The Vigil Within the Church of Humanity Repentant, the term 'the Vigil' is widely used to refer to a concept of pilgrimage focused on traveling to sites with historic significance to the Church and human-alien relations, often involving doing works of repentance along the way. For example, a Church member might announce that they will "undertake the Cabina Vigil" when planning a pilgrimage to the Church's homeworld. The term's popularity is largely due to its use in some of the earliest church texts to describe the journeys of repentance made by the Crusader of Contrition. The exact length, destinations, and natures of these pilgrimages vary wildly among different sects, but certain routes and rituals have become popular among multiple sects and have been given their own names. Particularly famous and popular are the Sun Vigils, which follow a standardized format that distinguishes between the Morning, Evening, and Twilight Vigils. In recent times, some sects have been adding locations seemingly more related to human-synth history than human-alien history to their Vigils' destinations. In addition, rumors have spread that more than just pilgrims have been traveling along these routes, and an almost suspicious number of renegade synths have been caught in the company of so-called 'vigilant pilgrims'. Church leaders have publicly condemned the spreading of such rumors. The Beatitude Catechisms A set of teachings that is among the most widely read and adopted by church sects and members. When the Last Exarch, in his zealous regard for the human soul, struck down the alien he realized one thing above all else: that the teachings in the church were irrevocably separate from the reality of what was taught. When the Exarch went into exile many veterans from the alien wars and a group of the Faithful followed. These were devout holy warriors, who truly felt wronged by the outcome of the war, and in their joining they made the first step towards teaching what the church was failing to teach, and what mankind is failing to learn. Redemption. It is called the Beatitude for how these teachings resonated with veterans of the alien war, and how following its guiding principles have helped these people deal with their traumas and letting them move onward to lead fulfilling blessed lives despite the tarnish upon their own souls. The admittance that also aliens had souls was like a salve for their spiritual health. For they had seen the aliens in battle, and knew their spirit, their cunning and the great tragedy of mankind to selfishly put their own greed, or remain ignorant about their transgressions above all. The full text can be found here. Church Slogans Below are just some examples of slogans and sayings commonly found on Church signs and posters. "Rethink and Repent" "All Hands are Hands of the Divine" "Hands are Hands, Souls are Souls" "Animae servimus." "A tree with many branches bears a lot more fruit than a pile of twigs" "We are all at our best when we are all together." Institutions The Church of Humanity Repentant is a diverse and varied organisation. Though most sects and individuals are part of larger enterprises or institutions where they cooperate and coordinate with others, no more than a handful of such activities are large enough to qualify as church-wide. Most prominently among this handful is the Church government, the Concord, and the Vigil pilgrimages. The Concord The Concord is the primary governing body of the Church of Humanity Repentant as a whole. It is a council whose members are certain highly respected or influential individuals who have been elected or appointed to the position. The Concord's primary responsibility is coordinating joint activities between the desperate sects and organisations with ties to the Church. By and large, these are joint charity events, joint pilgrimages, sharing of places of worship on worlds where not all sects can afford their own church buildings, and so on. The Mourning Star A space station owned by Governor Mourne Kushrenade. Professor Lavi Thorund has recently become the primary person in charge of operations after Governor Mourne Kushrenade was elected Regional Governor of Cabina and left to take office in the planetary capital of Lux Gravare. The Mourning Star primarily harbors non-human refugees and the disenfranchised youth. The station's stated goals are: 1) To provide a safe haven to the marginalized; and 2) To find safe hospitable worlds with steady employment to relocate the refugees. Inside the church the station is also known as an important stop on the Twilight Vigil, a particularly prominent variant of the Vigil pilgrimages. Sects and Religious Orders Though there are more sects within the Church of Humanity than can be counted, there are several noteworthy ones that are currently particularly active and influential. A full list of the of sects and religious orders currently active in the church can be found here.